Petitions urge naming NY bridge for Pete Seeger

Jan. 30, 2014
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Pete Seeger, shown in May 2001, plays the banjo aboard the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater while the ship is docked in Rondout Creek, a tributary of the Hudson River in Kingston, N.Y. Seeger was one of the founders of the sloop in 1966. / Seth Harrison, The (Westchester County, N.Y.) Journal News

Now, days after his death at 94, there's talk of naming the new Tappan Zee Bridge in Seeger's honor.

In a letter Tuesday to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Legislature, Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner wrote, "If the Tappan Zee Bridge is named for Pete Seeger we will honor a man who led the fight for a cleaner river. And, we will be inspired whenever we cross the Hudson to think of ways to keep the river clean and beautiful.

"A world-class new bridge should be named for a world-class environmentalist who made our region a better place."

Since then, an online petition calling for a Seeger span has gathered more than 1,000 signatures. Naming the new bridge "would be a fitting tribute to a man who did so much to help improve the mighty Hudson and the towns along its banks," the petition, started by a New York City resident, states.

An informal lohud.com online poll Wednesday showed a nearly even split between those for and against the proposal.

"I kind of like the idea," said Ted Tenenzapf, 53, dockmaster of Tarrytown Boat Club. Standing on a pier at the edge of the frozen river, with the bridge looming behind him, Tenenzapf said, "He did a lot to promote riverboating and the cleaning of the river, so I would support it."

Fishkill resident Chris Covucci, on the other hand, said Seeger's past membership in the Communist Party should keep his name off the bridge.

"He made a lot of great contributions, but I do think this other side has been brushed over and needs to be closely examined," he said.

How Seeger's family members feel about the proposal is unknown; they haven't weighed in publicly on it. Clearwater, the organization he founded as part of his advocacy for the Hudson, said it had not taken a position on the question, in deference to the family. Riverkeeper, another group that fights for the river's health, also declined comment.

Brian Conybeare, a Cuomo spokesman, issued a statement from the governor praising Seeger's life and accomplishments but said, "Right now we are focused solely on building a new bridge, not on calls for a new name."

That means they're also likely not giving much thought to another proposed bridge name, the Purple Heart Memorial Bridge, offered earlier by Republican state Sen. Greg Ball of Patterson - the community where Seeger lived as a child. Ball's office did not wish to discuss the competing proposals out of respect for Seeger's family, a spokesman said.

Construction on the $3.9 billion bridge is expected to be completed in 2018; the span will replace what is officially known as the Gov. Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge. Wilson grew up in Yonkers. The city's mayor, Mike Spano, did not respond to a query about how his constituents might feel about losing their nominal connection to the bridge.

Some have noted there also would be a touch of irony in naming the new Tappan Zee, which at least initially will not accommodate the most environmentally friendly forms of transportation (like trains), after a man who advocated tirelessly for the environment.

Others have suggested if a major structure is to bear Seeger's name, it ought to be closer to Seeger's home. The Walkway Over the Hudson, which connects Poughkeepsie and Highland, has been one structure mentioned. A Facebook effort backs naming part of the river itself for the folk icon and his late wife, Toshi.

Feiner said Seeger's legacy extends well beyond his hometown. Second, he said, if Seeger's name is on the bridge, millions of people will be motivated to "fight harder to keep the river clean. ... He's almost looking down on us saying, 'You better work harder.' "

If Feiner's campaign is successful, the Tappan Zee actually would be the second bridge named after Seeger, though the first is much, much smaller. The style of bridge he used on his banjo was so uncommon it became known in some banjo circles as the Pete Seeger Banjo Bridge.

Who could argue with that?

Read the online petitions at https://www.change.org/petitions/gov-cuomo-name-the-new-tappan-zee-bridge-for-pete-seeger and https://www.facebook.com/peteseegerhudsonriver.